LIVING WITH THE SCARS THEY CAUSED: A PORTRAITURE STUDY OF BLACK AMERICAN ALUMNI GIVING AT A PREDOMINANTLY WHITE INSTITUTION ASSOCIATED WITH SLAVERY

This proposed qualitative study examined the donor behavior of six Black American alumni from a predominantly white institution (PWI) associated with slavery. The site selected for this study was assigned the pseudonym Anonymous University, which enrolls approximately 46,000 students with 9% of total enrolled students identifying as Black or African American. Using critical race theory (CRT) as a theoretical framework and portraiture as a research design, the purpose of this study was to explore how Black American alumni perceive their undergraduate or graduate student experiences, examine what experiences helped form their racial identity during college at a PWI associated with slavery, and how those experiences influence their alumni giving. The findings indicate that while racial identity development had no influence on the donor behavior of Black American alumni from a PWI associated with slavery, student experiences were highly influential in this alumni population participating in alumni giving. This study offers recommendations to higher education administrators, student affairs and development offices to enhance Black student experiences and strategies to increase participation of Black American alumni giving.